15. Se7en (1995)
Another film that debatably is or isnt horror, depending on the viewer. Ive personally always thought of David Finchers Se7en as a horror film, even if its horror masquerading as a cop movie mystery. Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt make up a team of cops on the hunt for a killer basing his murders on the seven deadly sins, although its unclear until the end who really has the upper hand in their chase. David Finchers second film (after his disastrous experience at the helm of Alien 3) is full of 90s noir imagery, moral and ethical questions, and a seemingly unstoppable evil. The ending, like the Sixth Sense, is whats remembered the most, as we finally move from the dark, rainy city into the wide open space of the desert, where the cops and the killer each finally lay down their cards and show their hands.
14. 28 Days Later (2002)
Danny Boyles film may have set off the revitalization of zombie films over the last decade, because it gave zombies something that they hadnt had in the past: speed. Suddenly they werent the lumbering, brain-dead monsters of films past, they were a horde of olympic speed sprinters chasing after you with no signs of slowing. Featuring gorgeously eerie shots of an abandoned London, a grainy, apocalyptic look, and a great sound track (as is typical for Boyle), 28 Days Later was intensely fresh and original upon its release, and still remains an involving, cerebral horror film more than ten years on. Here is a film that forces us to question which is worse: the monsters outside or the humans trying to survive by any means necessary? As with all great films, it never gives us a totally clear answer, but allows us to watch the proceedings unfold with wonder and fear in our heads and hearts.
13. Ringu/The Ring (1998 & 2002)
Another film thats best remembered for its ending, Ringu remains Japans highest grossing horror film, while Gore Verbinskis American take on the tale is up to par with the original. Both plot lines are fairly similar, with only minor changes between the two films. Its rare that an English-language remake lives up to the precedent set by the original film, but The Ring is the exception to the rule. Verbinskis film is all foggy texture and growing gloom, a pictured bathed in the hazy gray of the Pacific Northwest. The Ring is a film that stays with you after youve left the theater, especially once the seventh day after you first see it rolls around, and you secretly hope that your television doesnt start acting funny.
12. Night of the Living Dead (1968)
It doesnt have the budget, resources, special effects, or color of its sequel, but George A. Romeros Night of the Living Dead has some kind of magic to it that still makes it the scarier of the two. Maybe it is the black and white, or the low-fi soundtrack, or the methodic pace that make it so effective. Maybe its just the mood that comes with watching those first flesh eaters slowly wander across the dimly lit yard, eyes vacant but headed for their prey. Some films just capture something special, and Night of the Living Dead is one of them. By all rights it should feel old, cheap and laughable now, but its still as potent and frightening as ever.
11. The Shining (1980)
Stanley Kubricks take on the Stephen King novel of the same name feels less like an adaptation and more like an interpretation. Here, we get one of the best filmmakers of all time at the top of his form. He turns the Overlook hotel into an monstrous maze of winding hallways and echoing rooms that seem to have no end. The horror Kubrick builds creeps in slow and steady, as we watch Jack Nicholson gradually go from anxious, to unglued, and then to full on psychotic by the films ending. The formal pacing and presentation of the film enhance this feeling, mesmerizing us and creating the feeling that the Overlook may be getting to us, the viewers, as well. The Shining has some of the most memorable and oft-referenced scenes of any horror movie ever, and were it not by some troubling overacting by its two leads (Shelly Duvall mainly, but Nicholson isnt innocent either), it would be a near perfect horror film.